As seen on Israel21c.org “Why are 4 US states building bridges to Israeli tech?”

As part of their post-Covid economic strategy, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas and Arizona are stepping up cooperation with Israeli companies.
The United States and Israel have enjoyed mutually beneficial business relations for many years in the areas of defense, commerce and technology.
While Israel seems to be ahead of the curve in combating Covid-19, cooperation on the US state level has increased regarding relevant Israeli technology and solutions…

Florida:

Florida and Israel have maintained a close relationship in travel and trade. In tech, having an active community is important in building an ecosystem and an economic bridge to promote mutual trade and assure Israeli startups arrive on a soft landing pad.

However, it’s not Miami with its large Israeli population and tech connection to Latin America but Tampa that has taken the lead in building that bridge.

Tampa is recognized as an emerging ecosystem and it’s home to the Florida Israel Business Accelerator. FIBA connects high-potential Israeli tech startups to partners, investors and advisers.

FIBA’s latest cohort of Israeli companies traveled throughout Florida to gauge economic opportunities. FIBA offers insights to the Israeli startups in its program as well as those in Israel looking for an opportune US market entry.

Recently, FIBA hosted webinars helping Israeli founders learn more about how Covid-19 is impacting the local ecosystem. Topics ranged from US government PPP loans for struggling businesses, to employment, to the challenges around remote selling.

FIBA Executive Director Rachel Marks Feinman reports, “There is a tremendous amount of activity and communication on many levels between Israel and Florida related to Covid-19 specifically. Some examples of what FIBA is doing to help participation include a webinar hosted by the Israeli Consulate in Miami featuring healthcare-related companies from Israel addressing Covid-19 with over 200 participants.”

She says FIBA has facilitated introductions for several companies with solutions for combating Covid-19, such as Uniper Care, GlobeKeeper, Aura Air and MilagroAI.

Marks Feinman says FIBA is “connecting leading Florida hospitals with hospitals in Israel to share best practices and explore research opportunities, and the continued work under the USF-TAU-FIBA Memorandum of Understanding that was focused on healthy aging and addressing ways to support the elderly during the pandemic.”…